While the DVR has become a staple in 50 percent of U.S. homes and has helped changed the way consumers watch video, it’s not the only way consumers can watch on their own terms. Homes without the additional hardware are just as able to enjoy the experience of watching on their own time and at their own leisure thanks to expanding video on demand (VOD) accessibility.

According to Nielsen’s Q2 2013 Cross-Platform Report, set-top box VOD is found in about 60 percent of U.S. households—up from 37 percent in 2008. While the technology has been available for over a decade, it wasn’t always in demand. Consumers initially found the interface difficult to use, and program distributors were wary of delivering content when the audience couldn’t be measured, and therefore outside of their window of monetization. Because of these issues, VOD options for the consumer were often limited to old shows or past seasons of shows.

Over the past year, however, networks have stepped up their efforts to make more recent content available, including recently telecast content and multiple episodes from the current season. VOD access is also much more user friendly than it has been in the past.